rev_f_13floor

THE THIRTEENTH FLOOR
craig bierko / armin mueller-stahl / gretchen mol

as reviewed by Jack Crompton at Amazon.com, November 21, 2006

A virtual reality inside a virtual reality...

1999 was quite a year for paradigm-shifting movies, the most impactful on the culture undisputedly being the original ‘Matrix’ film. Well, here’s one that some may have missed in the rotation that echoes a similar theme to the Matrix in a different way. Real interesting stuff here.

While not the best in it’s execution, the 13th floor is still a brilliant conceptual film. Like the matrix, I found it bit too 'Hollywood' with it's gratuitous 'action scenes'. However, it still holds up as a really interesting story from start to finish and gives one much to contemplate. It also has one of those twists at the end that surprise you even when you thought all the surprises were understood. I really like films that do that.

The basic story is about a virtual reality software program that is so 'real' it actual can take a live person's consciousness and move into a cyber reality, in this case, 1930 Los Angeles, where the participant experiences life there exactly like his waking life here, only the difference is that everything is the product of computer modelling. It's really a very interesting concept because that is what quantum physicists are saying our own brain does.

All in all, The Thirteenth Floor is a thoroughly entertaining movie. It’s intellectually engaging with a bit of romance weaved in as the plot thickens. It's a brain teaser, and those who like science fiction and subjects that inspire you to think outside the box, this one is a must see.

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